“Trixie!”
Trixie had been so engrossed in her thoughts that she leapt up and found herself holding on to the statue’s throat for dear life. She looked up to find Rainbow Dash hovering just above her.
“Whoa, sorry! Didn’t mean ta scare ya.”
Trixie immediately released the statue and dropped to the ground, thinking quick as she struck a regal pose. “Trixie wasn’t scared! Just startled, that’s all.” She paused for a second before cracking a hoof against her own skull. “No, no, no. Stop talking like that!”
Rainbow floated a few feet back with a raised eyebrow. “Oookay.”
“Hey, you’re here!” Trixie flinched as a hoof was wrapped about her shoulder, Pinkie bursting up seemingly from nowhere with an impossibly wide grin. “Whadaya know?”
Trixie looked to Pinkie, then to Rainbow. “Y-yes… What are you doing here?”
“Just a sec.” Rainbow raised a hoof before she turned and flew towards the wall which Trixie had used to enter the courtyard. As she passed over it she called, “Hey guys, guess who’s here!”
A few seconds later Rainbow returned, carrying Applejack in her hooves. Fluttershy appeared as well, struggling to carry Rarity. As they landed in the courtyard, there was a flash of violet light. When it faded Twilight was among them.
“You’re all here?” Trixie sat as she tried to process this news. “Why? What are you all doing here?”
Pinkie bounced a circle around Trixie as she sang out, “We’re looking for the Elements of Harmony!”
“The… The Elements of…?”
Twilight approached, frowning with concern. “We spent the past few weeks doing research on how to take care of Nightmare Moon. From what we were able to dig up, only the Elements can defeat her.”
Applejack nodded as she adjusted her hat. “An’ accordin’ ta some book Twilight found, the Elements were last seen in this here castle.”
“Oh… okay…” Trixie rubbed the back of her head as she considered this information. They were here, looking for the Elements at the same time that she'd come. Just a coincidence? Perhaps… But Fine Crime was the one who’d sent her here, and she knew better than to trust coincidences when he was involved. “Did you find them?”
“We’re not sure,” Fluttershy replied, drooping a little.
“We found these.” Rarity used her magic to pull something large and round from her saddlebag. It was a white orb of solid stone.
“There’s five of them.” Rainbow pulled out one from her own bag. “But there’s supposed to be six of ’em…”
“We’ve practically turned this place upside down trying to find the sixth Element,” Twilight concluded with head hanging low. “But… so far…”
Trixie’s ears lowered as she took this news in. “I see.”
It came suddenly, a faint stirring of her memories. “I see.” She spun about to look up at the petrified Celestia. “I… I see!”
The Elements of Harmony. Why did it seem so obvious now? The Elements were meant to turn Discord to stone.
Perhaps they could work in reverse?
“Wow,” Twilight said from behind Trixie. “That’s a very accurate statue of Celestia.”
Trixie turned to observe them all, her mind racing. “You’re all here. Now. It’s just like she told me!”
Applejack and Rainbow shared raised eyebrows. “She?” Rainbow asked.
“Twilight!”
“Me?” Twilight set a hoof to her own chest and cocked her head.
“The other Twilight,” Trixie corrected. “The one who died. The one who came here from… from…” From where?
“Whoa, whoa.” Pinkie popped up between Trixie and Twilight to flash a peering eye on Trixie. “You mean that changeling Twilight?”
“She was right all along.” A wave of elation had Trixie grinning like a silly filly. “‘The power of the six Elements.’ ‘Remember the cutie marks.’ I remember!”
Fluttershy backed away with ears tucked. “Umm, Trixie? I don’t mean to be rude or anything, but… you’re sounding a little… odd.”
“Don’t you understand?” Trixie paused and forced herself to soften her tone. “No, of course you don’t. She didn’t talk to any of you.”
Twilight shot her friends an uncertain frown. “Trixie, what in Equestria are you talking about?”
Trixie studied them all for a few seconds, trying to think of how to explain in a few sentences what took her weeks to comprehend. She closed her eyes and tried to envision the old scroll the other Twilight had shown her. The cutie marks…
She pointed to Applejack. “Honesty.” Applejack’s eyes darted about for a moment, but then she smiled.
To Fluttershy. “Kindness.” Fluttershy hesitated, body low, but then offered a small smile of her own and stood tall.
Trixie pointed to Pinkie. “Laughter.” Pinkie was giggling uncontrollably.
Next was Rarity. “Generosity.” Rarity blushed before striking a regal pose.
Trixie pointed to Rainbow. “Loyalty.” Rainbow grinned and rubbed her scarred chest self-appreciatively.
At last Trixie turned to Twilight, who was watching with lips slightly parted and eyes anxious. “Magic.”
Twilight looked down at herself, then back at Trixie. “What?”
“You’re the Elements.” Trixie swung her leg wide to indicate the entire group. “Don’t you get it? The Elements of Harmony reside in you!”
Applejack scuffed the ground and lowered her hat over her eyes. “Ah dunno, Trixie. Aren’ the Elements supposed ta be… you know, things?”
“They’re the Elements of Harmony,” Trixie said. “They’ll respond to your friendship!”
“Friendship?” Pinkie’s smile dropped.
“We’ve been at one another’s throats for years,” Rarity pointed out. “This little team of ours is a fairly new thing.”
Fluttershy shrank back, her eyes going to the others in a fretful display. “It might be a little early to be calling it a ‘friendship.’”
“But you’re all here.” Trixie turned to Twilight and shook her. “You’re here, right now. The timing is perfect! You can use the Elements, I know you can!”
Twilight raised her hooves to stop the shaking. “But we don’t have the sixth—”
Trixie leaned close to emphasize her words. “You are the sixth Element. The Elements are more than a bunch of rocks! I know it’s hard to understand. It’s been arranged to be hard!”
“Yeah.” Pinkie reared back to shrug with a grin. “He did go out of his way to make it hard for us.”
“We thought you might be the one to use them,” Rainbow pointed out. “After all, you’re the one who helped us—”
“Me?” Trixie shook her head with force. “Absolutely not! I’m about as far away from harmony right now as any pony can be. But the six of you can do it, I know you can. The Elements need to be used right now.”
“Now?” Applejack asked as the six ponies shared questioning looks. “Why now? On what?”
Trixie turned about to look up at the statue. “On Celestia.”
There was a long silence as the others considered this. It was Rarity who finally spoke up. “Umm, on a statue?”
Trixie sighed and turned to them. “That’s not—”
She paused, eyes going wide as she noticed the dark blue fog that was at their collective hooves. “Oh, no…”
“Trixie? Wha—aah!” Twilight flew into the air as a blast of energy erupted beneath her hooves. Another, larger blast of blue energy erupted, sending the rest of the ponies sprawling.
Untouched, Trixie back-stepped from the sight with heart pounding and her anger rising as the fog coalesced. Within seconds it had taken on a very familiar shape.
Dark wings spread wide, wicked eyes opened, and Nightmare Moon stood where the others had been.
“Hello again, girls.” Her lips upturned in a wicked smile.
Trixie took on an aggressive pose. “What are you doing here, you witch?”
Nightmare set a hoof to her heart. “Now, Trixie, is that any way to treat the love of your life?”
Trixie’s horn flashed as she scuffed the ground. “You’re no love of mine.”
Nightmare set the same hoof to her cheek and pouted. “Oh, now you’ve gone and hurt Luna’s feelings. I guess I’ll have to teach you a lesson.”
Her pout turned to a menacing grin as a thin beam blasted from her horn, striking an unprepared Trixie in the chest. Trixie smacked against the statue and collapsed.
“Trixie!”
She looked up in time to see the others all gather before her, forming a united front between her and Nightmare.
Rainbow shook her hoof. “Leave her alone, Luna!”
“Yeah,” Pinkie added. “You mess with her, you mess with us!”
Fluttershy ducked low at the back of the pack. “W-we don’t want to hurt you...”
“Maybe you don’t,” Applejack grumbled, brow furrowed beneath her hat as she sneered.
Nightmare laughed. “Isn’t this adorable? All the ex-lovers, together in their hatred! Do you really think you can stand up to the Princess of the Night?”
Twilight’s horn flashed bright. “We’re willing to try.”
“Stop!” Trixie leapt to her hooves and pushed through so that she could stand before them. “You can’t fight her.”
Rarity’s eyes went wide. “What? Why?”
Rainbow pounded her hooves together. “She’s not worth it, Trixie.”
Twilight tried to push Trixie aside, eyes locked hard on Nightmare. “We’ve all felt the way you do. You have to get over it, Trixie!”
“No!” Trixie shoved Twilight back. “This isn’t the way!”
Nightmare laughed a little more. “Still protecting me, even now? I should be flattered by your loyalty, I suppose.”
Trixie ignored the princess and focused on her… her friends. “You have to figure out the Elements. You’re united — you’re working together! Use that to understand the Elements of Harmony.”
“We don’ have time fer that!” Applejack took a step forward, fierce eyes locked over Trixie’s shoulder. “She’s here, right now.”
“She’s mine!” There was such force in Trixie’s voice that they all took a cautious step back. “This is my responsibility. Let me face her while you figure out the Elements!”
Twilight’s jaw dropped. “Are you crazy?”
“I d-don’t think that’s a g-good idea,” Fluttershy added.
“Maybe not, but it’s what’s going to happen. Nightmare!” Trixie turned around just in time to take another hit to the chest. Strangely, this one didn’t hurt. Indeed, she didn’t even feel it. Trixie looked down at where the beam had struck but found no mark.
“What was tha… that…” She dropped to her knees, and inescapable weariness coming over her.
“Oh.”
“Trixie, hang in there!” Twilight caught her as she started to fall.
Nightmare Moon’s laughter echoed in Trixie ears.
“Don’t worry.” Trixie smiled up at her former tormentor even as her vision began to blur. “I’ll keep her busy. You figure out the Elements.”
Twilight chewed her lip, ears folded back as she cradled Trixie. “But… B-but we don’t know how.”
Trixie’s eyesight faded. “Just… Just be friends…”
Trixie’s eyes flashed open. She was lying on her side, the grit and bite of sand on her cheek. She shook herself and sat up, rubbing the dust from her body. Where was she?
She looked down at her hooves, which were sunk a few inches into the sand. It was a very strange, soft blue sand. She realized it matched her hair in color. She pulled a strand of her mane before her eyes as a test; sure enough, it blended in with the color of the sand almost perfectly.
She released her mane and spun slowly about to take in her surroundings. The world was encased in a smooth, curved black wall that made a circle some fifty feet in diameter. She gazed up to find a sky of grey, roiling clouds above her. She was trapped within what appeared to be a circular fort.
It all seemed so very familiar.
She sat in the sand to think and felt something heavy beneath one of her hind legs. Flinching, she stepped aside and looked down. At her hooves was a small, strangely familiar vase. She picked it up, considered it for a few seconds, then peered inside.
A tiny flame flickered within.
“You just don’t know when to give up, do you?”
Trixie jerked about, horn glowing in preparation. “Where are you?”
Nightmare’s voice filled the air, soft yet annoyed. “Why couldn’t you have just walked away like the rest of them? I promised Luna I’d leave you be, and I meant to keep that promise… for once. Keep this up, however, and I may have to go back on my word.”
Trixie turned a tight circle, still holding the vase. There was no sign of her enemy. She looked up at the cloudy sky. “Come out and fight me, Nightmare! Or are you too scared?”
A hiss of pure venom coated Nightmare’s words. “Be careful what you wish for, you arrogant upstart. Your pride may be the death of you.”
Trixie ignored the threat. Her eyes darted about, covering every inch of her surroundings. “This is a dream. In this place I can take on anything you throw at me!”
“Anything?”
Trixie jerked about, grimacing at the abrupt appearance of something she’d never expected: her wagon, sitting in the middle of the great circle of sand. Nightmare Moon was there, standing atop the roof and leering.
“You know, I still can’t believe that this is the single most important thing in your life.”
Her hackles rising, Trixie eyed the wagon for but a second before she returned her gaze to Nightmare. “My wagon? Is that the best you can do?”
Nightmare’s smile broadened. “Let’s see if you can save it this time.” She stomped a single hoof, and the wagon began to sink in the sand.
Ah, yes; now Trixie remembered this dream. Anger began to boil within her as she watched the wagon’s slow descent.
Nightmare lifted off, eye flashing with triumph. “I’ll let this distract you while I go handle your new ‘friends.’ Do have fun.”
A growl erupted from Trixie’s throat, so menacing it surprised even her. She reared back and fired a black ball of energy at the wagon, which erupted in an explosion of splinters and scraps of metal.
Nightmare was caught in the shockwave, flapping wildly to keep from flying into one of the walls. She stared down at the smoking crater that had once been Trixie’s wagon.
“Wha—?”
“Nopony ever understood,” Trixie hissed, pawing at the sand. “It was never about the wagon. What Trixie lost had nothing to do with something so obvious!”
Nightmare’s lips pulled back in a sneer. “Do not give me that. You fought like hell to rescue that wagon!”
“Not the wagon.” Trixie shook her head. “I was struggling to save that which the wagon represented: freedom!”
Nightmare’s sneer dropped, her eyelids lowering as she leaned forward. “Freedom? What freedom?”
“The freedom of choice. The freedom to be who I wanted to be, rather than who everypony expects! The freedom to chase after my own goals!”
Nightmare burst into laughter, ignoring Trixie’s snarl. “Freedom? How pathetic! There is no freedom in this world – Celestia has seen to that.”
“You’re wrong,” Trixie countered. “I’ve rediscovered what was taken from me. I found it in the moment I found Celestia’s statue. I understand, Nightmare!”
“You don’t understand a thing.” Nightmare’s wings flapped harder as she began to ascend. “You really think those pathetic fillies can learn to use the Elements of Harmony? They’ve been ripped apart by my manipulations, and by the world Celestia has nurtured. Nopony can use the Elements in today’s age. It’s a lost cause.”
The dark alicorn turned away from Trixie and made her way to the wall. “I’m going to leave you here now, and teach the rest of my ex-lovers what it means to fight against fate.”
Trixie reared back. “You’re not going anywhere!”
Nightmare laughed once more as she approached the top of the wall. “And you intend to stop me… how?”
Trixie bit back a curse. She looked around, mind working swiftly, then noticed the vase still in her hooves. Her eyes locked on the flame within as she remembered the original dream. She observed the vase’s curved shape, then shape of the walls.
Suddenly, things made a lot of sense.
“How about this?” She lowered her head so her horn was pointing inside the vase and fired off some magic.
She closed her eyes as an explosion of wind blasted sand in her face. There was no bite, only softness as she was knocked into a standing position by an all-encompassing warmth. Trixie opened her eyes to find herself engulfed in blue flame, but she wasn’t burning. Her mane whipped about in the cacophony of wild winds, her heart pounded at the intense heat that filled her to her core.
Through the raging sands Trixie saw a long crack descending down the walls of her dream prison. The crack grew, spread, spawned more. The walls shattered, stonework and masonry ascending into the dark sky! Trixie watched the pieces fade in the winds with wide eyes as the flames sank into her skin and instilled her with…
…passion.
Trixie felt good. She felt… amazing! She stood tall, a sense of pride and confidence filling her. She focused her magic, keeping the heat of the flame close.
After a few seconds, Nightmare appeared in the mess. She struggled to stay aloft in the raging winds and biting sands. “Wh-what did you do?!”
A continuous dark blue beam fired from the princess’ horn, but Trixie focused and fired her own light blue beam. The two connected in a flash of light, the energies surging between them.
Nightmare’s eyes widened. “How? How are you matching my power?”
Trixie dropped low, meeting her enemy glare for glare. “This mess started when I asked Luna to show me her dream. She did, and I paid for it, but I’m stronger as a result!”
Nightmare’s eyes grew sinister. She thrust her horn forward and focused; her beam began to push Trixie’s back.
Trixie gritted her teeth and pressed her magic even further, going well beyond her waking limits, and her beam began to resist that of her opponent.
The two struggled for dominance, their beams surging back and forth in a magnificent display of power. The force of the magic drove the already wild winds into a frenzy as Trixie ground her hooves into the sand and met Nightmare’s venomous glare with a confidence unknown to her.
Nightmare’s beam began to waver.
Finally, shouting furiously, the dark alicorn broke contact and dropped, Trixie’s beam slicing through the air above her. A trio of white balls flew from Nightmare's horn in wide arcs and struck the sand beneath Trixie, the resulting explosion sending her sprawling.
Trixie hit the sand on her side, but was on her hooves in an instant. She saw Nightmare pound the ground with such force that sand billowed into the air. The sand formed a thin vortex as it was caught in the intense winds.
“You wretched creature!” The dark princess screamed over the weather. “You would dare challenge me here? I am the master of nightmares, the evoker of terrors! I am going to rip you to shreds!” A black beam erupted from her horn.
Trixie sucked in a deep, calming breath and lowered her horn… and the beam came to a sluggish stop.
Nightmare’s jaw dropped as the beam reverted to black smoke and dissipated harmlessly in a gust of wind. “Y-you… How did you…?”
Trixie shot her a triumphant smirk. “I figured out the trick. Don’t you know? Luna told me about dreams. I never understood what her words meant, but I get it. I don’t have to understand – I just have to have faith. This is the world of dreams; if I believe I can do something, it will be done!”
Nightmare paced back a few steps with a fierce glare, her lips moving almost silently. “I-impossible… Inconceivable. I have been manipulating dreams for a millennium. Y-you can’t be that good so quickly!”
But Trixie knew all she needed to. She focused her magic, and the flames that surrounded her began to take shape upon her back. “Luna showed me her dream,” she declared, concentrating hard on the spell. “I fought for it. I paid for it. No more, Nightmare. Now, now I’m going to show you my dream!”
A flash of light erupted and the winds came to an abrupt stop. Nightmare Moon turned her head away and shielded her eyes against the glare that emanated from Trixie.
Seconds passed, and at last the light faded. Trixie shook, stretched, and felt something… move. She glanced back and grinned.
She had wings.
“I-impossible…”
“This is a dream.”
Trixie turned on Nightmare with head held high. “Anything is possible! I can be free if I want. I can have wings if I want!” Her head lowered and her eyes sharpened. “I can defeat you if I want.”
Nightmare’s face contorted in rage, her eyes turning white and wings spreading wide. “You? Defeat me? Buck Luna and buck Celestia! You’re arrogance ends here, Lulamoon!”
Another black beam zapped from the princess’ horn, but Trixie darted into the sky, barely dodging as sand erupted all about her. She rocketed into the sky, Nightmare’s howls hot on her tail as another beam just missed her. The winds kicked up once more; the sky began to roil like a dark sea; sand flew about the wild skies.
Despite the raging world around her, Trixie remained calm, focused and determined. She was more ready for this battle than she’d been for any of those that had come before. For the first time since this whole mess had begun, she knew without a shred of doubt what she was fighting for.
That gave her courage.
She heard Nightmare let out another vicious scream and took it as a cue; she spun about, her fresh wings grazing the cool clouds, and cast the spell. A blue, semi-transparent barrier appeared before her, easily deflecting Nightmare’s rapid stream of lasers. She focused, and a tall warhammer emerged, wrapped in a shining aura. Nightmare, barreling at Trixie in a fury, barely managed to roll aside and avoid the weapon as it swung in a wide arc.
Trixie lunged, but this time her hammer clashed against something solid: Nightmare had summoned a shield. A mere instant later a sword also formed; it thrust at Trixie and forced her to back away. Even as she did, she cast a new spell:
Bolts of lightning streaked across the sky. Nightmare dodged wildly – bolt after bolt barely missing her – until she cast a spell of her own that blasted the clouds themselves away. The two were now beneath a brilliant starscape, the full moon massive over their heads.
Nightmare let out a shout as she brandished her sword and shield at Trixie. “This makes no sense! Where did you learn to wield such magic so quickly?”
Trixie hovered, swinging her hammer with a fierce light in her eyes. “I remember how we first met. It was a dream in which I was far more powerful that I ever could be in reality. But now I understand that it wasn’t just that dream: here, I can be as powerful as I want.”
She rose up high into the sky, and when her wings spread before the pale moon a flash of prismatic blues made Nightmare wince and cover her eyes.
“I don’t care if you are the Princess of Nightmares. I am Trixie Lulamoon, and this is my moment!”
She darted towards her opponent in a blur of light and energy.
Nightmare recovered from the spell and was able to block the attack with both armaments. A shockwave of pale and dark blues radiated out from the impact. Nightmare glared across the weapons upon Trixie with white eyes and a snarl.
Trixie returned the glare, chest filled with pride and confidence. “I’ll show you my new dream! I will end you. I will stop Celestia. And if I achieve nothing else, I will save Luna!”
Nightmare shoved her back, the two separating in a night sky crackling with magical energy. She gritted her teeth and let out a lengthy growl. “Nopony can have her. Luna. Is. Mine!”
The battle resumed in earnest. Aural weapons clashed and whirled in a furious blur between the combatants. Nightmare fired spells with the speed and ferocity of an accomplished battlemage, but Trixie’s newfound conviction and her determined confidence let her keep up – if only barely. More than once she would dodge and only just avoid taking more than a small singeing or a light cut. Many times she would cast a counterspell an instant prior to being reduced to cinders, or frozen, or impaled, or any of a hundred other things. But she continued, and more than once was able to land her own minor blows against the feared Nightmare Moon. And with every successful blow she reaffirmed her conviction; she could win this!
Nightmare’s spells grew ever more intense. Beyond that: they were legitimately awe-inspiring. Stars literally fell from the sky, slicing at Trixie like the finest of blades. The moon would flash great beams of energy that incinerated huge swathes of the sandy desert below. She even summoned a great volcano, which spewed its magmatic innards high above their heads! Every new spell was more violent, more chaotic, more dangerous.
Yet Trixie wasn’t without her own dream-fueled powers. The cascading stars became her glittering cape; the moon’s luminescent beams were weaved into a shimmering mage’s hat; the ascending fireballs became a flaming circle of rotating fury! She caught each of Nightmare’s most potent spells and turned them into weapons of her own, every new idea and impossible feat inspiring her strength and fortitude. She could feel herself growing stronger, and she relished the sheer power of it!
The situation had steadily reversed; now it was Nightmare Moon struggling to defend herself. The white fury of her eyes faded to their usual blue, pupils small and darting about. Her sparkling mane dimmed as her magic faded. When an explosive ball of magma shattered her shield to stardust she at last abandoned the fight.
Trixie wouldn’t let her flee; a sparkling white rope flew out and wrapped about Nightmare’s wings. She pulled the rope taught and jerked her foe back to the fray. Sensing victory, Trixie cried out her triumph and swung her warhammer just as Nightmare Moon turned about with a furious scream and stabbed with her sword.
The blade pierced deep into Trixie’s shoulder, passing through and into her wing.
At the same moment, the warhammer smashed against Nightmare’s side with the audible crunch of cracking bone.
The two ponies dropped from the skies, each crying out in pain as they toppled. They hit the desert floor at almost at the same time, blue sand bursting up in the calm air. Trixie lay on her side, clutching at her wound and grinding her teeth. It hurt like hell… but not so badly as she would have imagined. She forced herself to look up, but couldn’t see beyond the crater her fall had made.
There was no time to waste, for Nightmare would be coming. She eyed the sparkling, dark blue sword embedded in her shoulder and focused her magic. With the initial shock of the hit fading, she was able to remind herself that this was a dream and, in reality, there was no sword. She could deaden the pain with but a thought, for dreams were remarkably insubstantial things.
A few seconds were all she needed to render the weapon to glittery dust, issuing a silent ‘thank you’ to Luna as she did so. She observed the wound; no blood. Of course not, this was only a dream. With a little focus she found she was able to close the wounds.
But if she could do that, then Nightmare could too. This in mind, she climbed to her hooves before the healing was completed and limped out of the crater, her hooves struggling against the soft sand. She braced for a surprise attack as she cleared the crater’s rim, but there was none; she was all alone. Not trusting the moment, her eyes darted about the cool, dark desert for any sign of her enemy.
There, a few dozen feet away, was the other crater.
She made her way to it, eyes roaming the skies for any signs of an ambush. Her starry cape billowed in the gentle breeze, all that remained of the stormy gusts that marked the beginning of the fight. She paused at the edge of the crater, where she braced herself for an attack which wouldn’t come. Heart pounding, prepared for anything, she lunged over the side.
She landed in the soft sand and could only stare; Nightmare Moon had not moved from the center of the crater. She clutched her side, face locked in a grimace and breath coming in a deep, shaky rhythm .
“What is the meaning of this?” Trixie summoned her hammer, which hovered in a strike-ready position just over her shoulder. “You don’t expect me to fall for this, do you?”
Nightmare shot her a venomous glare. “I thought you had all the answers. Come on, then!” She fired a thin beam, but to call it dangerous would be like calling a pebble a boulder.
Trixie knocked it away with a swing of her leg.
She stared at her hoof, eyes wide as she realized she’d not even been marked by the shot. She turned her gaze upon Nightmare, who struggled on shaking legs only to collapse with a pained cry and tears in her frustrated eyes. The dark princess’ horn was smoking.
“What’s going on?” Trixie leveled her warhammer at Nightmare. “Heal your wounds! Don’t try to trick me into thinking this fight is over.”
“You… Y-you arrogant, ignorant brat,” Nightmare hissed, lips pulled back in a sneer. “Stop acting as if you understand everything!”
She made another attempt to stand, but only ended up dropping to her side with a pained shout. Sucking in sharp breaths, she looked up at Trixie with eyes full of hatred. “What are you waiting for? Go on, attack me, kick me while I’m down! I’d do it to you in a heartbeat.”
That was when Trixie realized that her tormentor wasn’t faking her pain; she really was at the end of her abilities. But that didn’t make sense. Nothing here was real! Trixie eyed the crater they were in, then glanced at her glimmering cape and luminous hat. Her eyes went to the stars and moon, glistening majestically in the vast sky above. Why couldn’t Nightmare Moon heal her wounds? Why was she so limited?
Then it dawned upon her, and she gazed upon the broken alicorn with a tight frown. “I see… You’re not dreaming at all. You really are here, aren’t you?”
Nightmare lifted her head to smirk, despite a shiver of pain passing through her body. “W-what are you going to d-do now, hmm? Go ahead: kill me. That’s why you’re here, isn’t it?”
Trixie sneered and raised her warhammer.
“Yield.”
Nightmare chuckled, then winced and clutched at her side. “Oh n-no, I don’t think so. What are you going to do? Remember, Luna and I are one now. We share the same body. She feels everything I do.” She grinned up at Trixie. “How does it feel to know that you’re hurting your precious pony princess? Go on, strike me down if you can!”
Trixie’s body trembled with rage as the alicorn began to cackle amid ragged gasps. She knew Nightmare’s words to be truth. If she struck now… but then she considered the situation. She thought on Luna, on Nightmare, on everything she now understood to be true.
A thousand years alone on the moon, trapped with a twisted voice in her head. Knowing she could never win, gradually going mad from the misery and helplessness...
Trixie made her decision.
Nightmare’s laughter came to an abrupt stop as she saw the hammer swinging. She jerked back just in time to avoid taking a direct hit and gritted her teeth from the effort. Her eyes flew open in alarm and confusion.
“W-what are you doing? Did you not hear me? If I die, Luna dies with me!”
Trixie stepped forward, the head of her hammer aimed at the prostrate princess’ chest. Her eyes welled over and her chest felt tight. “I swore I would save Luna. There are only two ways to do that: either you leave her forever or I kill the both of you!”
Nightmare leaned forward with a snarl. “You wouldn’t dare.”
Trixie’s horn flashed, and Nightmare rose from the ground with a surprised shout. She was thrown through the air and smashed in a cloud of sand against the side of the crater.
As Nightmare rolled to the bottom, Trixie approached with warhammer at the ready.
“Luna has spent the past thousand years being tortured by you and Celestia. Any alternative has to be better than what you’ve put her through. If I can’t free her from you, I can at least give her peace in death!”
Nightmare tried to climb to her hooves but collapsed onto her back with an agonized shout. She crawled backwards from the approaching Trixie, eyes wide. “Y-you wouldn’t! You love her – you don’t want to lose her!”
Though tears streamed down Trixie’s cheeks, she refused to back down. “Even if it means losing her, I will save her.”
Nightmare’s jaw dropped; she raised her hooves to block the attack. Her eyes shined with understanding… and fear.
Trixie sobbed, her heart breaking even as she raised her warhammer over the defenseless alicorn. “Give up! Give me back my princess! Give her back, or so help me I’ll smash you both into stardust!”
Nightmare turned and fought to climb out of the crater, but was unable to drag her way through the loose sands. Her terrified scream pierced the night. “I can’t! Only Celestia knows the spell, I can’t free her!”
“Then you leave me no choice,” Trixie whispered. She choked down a sob as she readied to swing.
Nightmare jerked to Trixie, a wisp of blue cloud coming over her face. When it passed, her head was no longer the darkness of Nightmare Moon but the pretty, imploring softness of Luna.
“Trixie, don’t!”
Trixie swung, the hammer smashing into the wing of Nightmare’s good side and sending her flying once more. She landed screaming against the wall of the crater. When she finished rolling to the bottom, she had lost the disguise and was once again wholly Nightmare Moon.
“I will not be distracted!” Trixie cried as she rubbed the moisture from her eyes. “One way or another, Luna’s suffering ends tonight.”
Nightmare’s face twisted with horror. She clawed away from her aggressor, eyes wide and pupils shrunk to pin pricks in her panic. Her horn smoked as she fought for a new spell. Her wing hung limply at her side; blood dripped from her fresh wound.
“No, keep away! D-don’t come any closer… help me!”
Trixie raised her warhammer, lips trembling as she thought of what she was about to lose: her precious Princess of the Night, the one great good in her life, the pony who inspired her, who made her feel like life was worth living! But if Nightmare refused to cooperate…
She closed her eyes and prepared to swing. “I’m so sorry, Luna.”
There was a flash of light so bright that it pierced through her closed eyelids. She opened them just in time to see Nightmare’s body fading to smoke; she’d left the dream world with the last of her magic.
The warhammer hit the sand, forgotten. A shaky breath escaped Trixie’s lips as she collapsed to her knees.
“Oh, thank Goddess!” She buried her head in her hooves and sobbed, overcome with the emotion of what she’d almost done.
She had been prepared to do it, to lose everything to end Luna’s suffering. But the sheer pain of that sacrifice… Just the fact that she had nearly gone through with it was enough to render her an emotional wreck. So she lay there and wept, bleeding out all the pain and wretchedness in a prolonged, inescapable fit as she thanked anypony listening that she hadn’t been permitted to carry out the deed.
The recovery took precious time. Every time Trixie thought she might be done crying, she thought of Luna’s desperate face and had to struggle not to break down once more. Nightmare Moon couldn’t free Luna, but if the others had done their part…
What if they hadn’t? Nightmare Moon might escape. Worse, the other ponies might kill her! True, Trixie had been about to do the same thing, but…
If Luna’s misery was to be ended in such a manner, she wanted to be the one to do it. Maybe Trixie was being foolish, but her heart told her that she should bear that responsibility.
Yet it would be far better if the others could grasp the Elements of Harmony.
With that last thought, Trixie realized the inherent danger of her situation. She was asleep, and Nightmare Moon had returned to the waking world. She was wounded, her magic spent, and there were six ponies waiting for her with vendettas to be had. If Trixie didn’t wake up, and soon…
She stood on unsteady legs and brushed the moisture and sand from her face. Her eyes roamed the crater, even though she knew it was pointless. This was a dream, so the exit wouldn’t be obvious. Surely that kind of magic wasn’t limited to Luna and Nightmare Moon! She closed her eyes and focused, her horn glowing brightly. She had no idea what she was doing, but she had to try something. Anything!
She strained, grinding her teeth as her horn glowed brighter and brighter. She tried to think of dreams and how they worked, but the mechanics of it all was beyond her grasp. Still she felt around, prodding the ethereal layers that surrounded her. There had to be a hint, a guide, something. Figuring things out in a time of need was her specialty, and this was most certainly a needy time!
Her head began to ache. A small gasp escaped her lips as she let the magic fade. She rubbed her horn tenderly, mind frantic for some sort of solution. How in the name of all things pony did Luna learn to do it?
Trixie tried again, sending invisible magic tendrils that flowed and searched the unknown nooks and crannies of the dreamscape. After several uneventful minutes her horn began to ache once more and she paused. Her worry intensified as she gazed around at her empty surroundings..
“Oh please,” she whispered, dropping to her haunches. “Let Twilight and the others understand.”
She made a third attempt, and a fourth, each time struggling for longer. After the fifth failure she realized she was getting nowhere and nearly had another breakdown. Here she was in a dream world that gave her infinite magical capacity, and she was too ignorant to use it to wake up! She didn’t want to wait – she couldn’t. Who knew what might be happening to Nightmare while she lay unconscious in the dirt?
Trixie looked up at the brilliant moon. “Luna, if you can hear me, I really need your help right about now.”
There was no answer.
Not that she expected one.
She sighed and lowered her head. That one, simple act made her notice something she hadn’t before: the necklace. She was wearing Luna’s healing talisman. She blinked, lifting it up in both hooves to study its black surface. When did that get there?
She sighed, a small smile on her lips; this was a dream, wasn’t it? What was the point in asking?
She was still wearing the necklace in the real world, too. In fact, it hadn’t left her neck since Rainbow had returned it to her. It just felt so natural by now. She held it close, rubbing her cheek against the cool stone. She was growing more and more fond of it by the day. If only—
She paused to stare at the talisman, a crazy thought entering her mind. She knew that when ideas like that hit her, it was best to act on them. So, raising the stone high in her hoofs, she touched her horn to it and concentrated…
“Wait! Please, stop!”
Trixie’s eyes snapped open, the familiar and panicked voice of Nightmare echoing in her ears. She leapt to her hooves so quickly she nearly fell down all over again, her vision swimming.
She was back in the courtyard!
She spotted Nightmare, the princess’ eyes wide with terror as she struggled to crawl away in the moist grass. There was an intensity in the air, a magical aura so powerful it made Trixie’s horn vibrate. She turned to find herself blinded by a colorful light and had to cover her face against the painful glare. Yet even as she did, she thought she understood what might be happening.
She saw something pass by overhead… A rainbow.
“No!”
Trixie jerked about at the shriek, just in time to see Nightmare engulfed in a torrent of colors and magic.
“Stop, I want to live! Please! Celestia… Celestia!”
The scream was cut short as the energy erupted in a shower of colors and sparks, the shockwave knocking Trixie off her hooves. She hit the grass on her side, but wasted no time jumping back up. Her orientation was still off, though, and she stumbled sideways to her knees.
A long silence filled the cool air.
Then Applejack’s voice hit her ears. “W-wow… Did we really do that?”
Rainbow Dash’s voice was a little weak, but there was no hiding her excitement: “That was…awesome!”
“Trixie!”
Though her world was spinning, Trixie was somehow able to look at Twilight, who was lying on her belly and tilting just a little sideways. A smile covered her face, though, and she was now adorned with a brilliant gold crown.
“W-we did it, we figured out the Elements. You were right!”
“I… I knew you would,” Trixie answered, even as she thanked the divine Goddess that all her worst fears had passed. But she had a new one; what if the Elements didn’t work as predicted? With her vision finally stabilized, she climbed to her hooves and turned to scour the courtyard once again. She spotted a crater about a dozen feet from the Celestia statue and felt her heart stop.
“Luna!”
She ran as fast as she could, feeling strangely tired despite having been asleep for so long. She slid in the wet grass as she tried to stop and ended up falling face-first into the hole with a shout. She didn’t care about the mud and muck, though; her mind was focused on Luna.
She rolled until her back landed against something soft. Shaking grit from her face, she turned to find herself lying on top of Princess Luna.
Not Nightmare Moon. Luna.
The princess lay on her side, eyes closed. Trixie jumped to her hooves and grasped Luna’s face to study it up close.
“Luna? Please, tell me you’re okay…”
The alicorn let out a long, low moan. Her eyes flittered open, but only barely, and looked about as if unseeing. Then they locked on.
“T-Trixie…? Is… Is that really you…?”
Trixie felt tears coming to her eyes even as a grin formed on her lips. “Yes… Yes, it’s me. Oh, thank the moon!”
She wrapped the princess in a tight hug, only to leap back as Luna cried out in pain. “Sorry, I’m so sorry!” A quick glance at Luna’s side revealed that she still bore the wounds of the recent battle. “Oh. Luna, I am so sorry…”
Rendered properly awake by the moment of pain, Luna stared blankly at the crater wall just over Trixie’s shoulder. Her eyes widened, her body trembled. “I… She… Nightmare… She’s gone…” Slowly, as if the act were unfamiliar, she began to smile.
The princess buried her face in her hooves and wept.
“She’s gone! I’m free, thank all that is holy, I’m finally free!”
The air was filled with cheers. Trixie jumped and looked up to find the other six ponies leaping in joy. Fluttershy and Rainbow shared a hug, Applejack waved her hat. Pinkie showered them all with balloons! Rarity and Twilight were a bit more calm, smiling down at Trixie with tears in their eyes. Trixie smiled back, acknowledging their success with a nod before turning back to Luna.
The princess snatched Trixie up and began planting kisses on her face.
“Thankyouthankyouthankyou!”
For a moment Trixie was rendered to a state of giddy mindlessness, but she recovered quickly. She didn’t return the kisses. Instead, she pushed Luna back.
“L-Luna, I almost killed you! I… I…”
Luna set her hooves to Trixie’s cheeks, beaming through her tears. “And I love you all the more for it! You were prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice, you beautiful, beautiful mare!”
More kisses, amid laughter from the other ponies. Trixie could only blush and take them… not that she wasn’t enjoying it.
Luna looked up at the others and her eyes went wide. “You… All of you!” She turned her head away from them, and the laughter died quickly. “After all I did to you, you’re all here. You… You must all hate me.”
Trixie’s momentary elation faded. She chewed her lip and looked up at Twilight and the others. But the six ponies were all smiling; not a trace of anger adorned a single face.
“Princess Luna.” Twilight paused to look at the others. When they nodded she turned back to the princess with a warm smile. “I speak for all of us when I say that we are at your service.”
They bowed as one. Trixie’s heart jumped to her throat. She turned to find Luna staring up at her ex-lovers with wide eyes and jaw dropped. Her throat worked, struggling to make a sound as fresh tears formed.
“All of y-you…” The princess’ head lowered as she fought to control herself. “Th-thank you. I swear on my life – on my soul – I will make it up to all of you.” Her eyes turned to Trixie as she took on a feeble smile. “Especially you, Trixie. None of this would have been possible without you.”
Trixie blushed, rubbing her legs together as she glanced away. “Eeh, I can’t take all the credit…”
“Oh, yes you can,” Rarity called down to them.
“Ya brought us together,” Applejack chimed in.
Rainbow rubbed the back of her head with a weak smile. “Without you we’d still be at one another’s throats.”
Pinkie bounced, grinning from ear to ear. “But now we’re all friends of the besties variety! Super spectacularific best friendsies!”
“You opened our eyes,” Fluttershy said.
“And told us exactly what we needed to hear to learn to use the Elements of Harmony,” Twilight concluded. They all posed and displayed the necklaces and crown they’d earned. “You truly are the Great and Powerful Trixie.”
Trixie groaned and waved her hooves at them, cheeks burning. “Please don’t call me that.”
Luna giggled and planted a peck on Trixie’s cheek. “And modest, too. You’re a hero to us all, so we’ll call you what we please, lover.”
Trixie thought she might melt. “S-stop it, already! L-let’s get out of this hole…”
Luna giggled once more, but nodded. “Yes, I do think it is time we started planning the next step, and it will be an arduous one.”
She turned and looked at the edge of the crater. It wasn’t that high, but still she frowned. “I… don’t think I can get out.”
Trixie noted the massive bruise on the princess’ side and how the wing on her other side continued to hang limp. Guilt tore through her, yet she chose to remain silent and instead stood close.
“Here, let me…” Luna obliged, wrapping a leg about Trixie’s shoulder. She whimpered at the pain of a mere few steps.
“Let me help, too.”
Rainbow Dash dropped into the hole to stand at Luna’s opposite side. Together she and Trixie managed – with great caution and a little help from Twilight’s magic – to deliver the wounded princess out of the crater. It was no small task, and Luna was in tears once more by the time they were done. She sat in the wet grass, sucking in sharp gasps and clutching her chest.
Trixie cringed, ears drooping as she watched. “I am so sorry, Luna…”
“D-don’t be,” she hissed. She somehow managed to force a smile. “You d-did what you had to.”
That didn’t make Trixie feel any better. She considered the situation for a moment, realizing that Luna would be of little help in her current state. If only…
Trixie whacked herself over the forehead and pulled the talisman from around her neck. How could she have forgotten? “Here, use this.”
Luna’s eyes lit up at the sight of the necklace. “You… You still have it…”
Trixie went crimson and held it close. “Of course I do. I thought it might be all I’d have left to remember you by. It’s… important to me.”
Luna offered a serene smile, lowering her head to accept the talisman.
Trixie looked down at it, thinking for just a moment that she would miss it. “I would like this back, okay?”
“Of course.”
Trixie grinned as the necklace floated into the air between them. It was just about to slip over Luna’s head…
The world erupted with light. The force of the glare was so great that Trixie fell back, covering her eyes. What in the name of Equestria…?
“No! Trixie!”
The terror in Luna’s voice stopped Trixie’s heart. Just as quickly as it had come, the light was gone, and when Trixie turned to look she found that it had taken Luna with it.
Trixie’s eyes glistened as the talisman dropped to the grass. Its impact seemed like the thunder of a storm.